Just as the rumours claimed, Fallout 76 has turned out to be a multiplayer spin-off from Bethesda’s hugely popular post-apocalyptic series.

There wasn’t much talk about why it’s called Fallout 76, other than that’s the number of the nuclear vault you start the game as an inhabitant of.

Unlike the other Fallout titles you emerge from its protection just a few decades after a devastating nuclear war, and are tasked with not just surviving but rebuilding society.

But the biggest change from other Fallout games is that in Fallout 76 every character is played by another human player.

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The game’s map is divided into six distinct regions and is overall four times the size of Fallout 4.

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As you can see, it still looks similar to the previous Fallout games but Bethesda is boasting of new lighting effects and 16 times the detail for the graphics – and certainly the trees do look very nice.

As was obvious from the teaser trailer the game’s set in West Virginia and was described as a softcore (as opposed to hardcore) survival game by Bethesda veteran Todd Howard.

That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s particularly easy but that you’re not at risk of losing your character or equipment if you die.

Howard was also keen to point out that you can still play Fallout 76 on your own if you want to, even if the game is ‘entirely online’.

You can tell from the trailer that team play is very much encouraged, not just in terms of fighting but the bit where everyone’s playing in a band.

Other notable moments from the trailer include the musket-like pistol, a giant sloth, a giant bat/dragon thing, and monsters drawn from Virginian folk tales.

As suggested by earlier leaks a large part of the game revolves around constructing and repairing buildings, which seems to work very similarly to Fallout 4.

We particularly like the idea that you can take over leftover missile bases and fire a nuclear weapon at rival camps, although being able to do so seems to be pretty difficult and almost impossible without working together.

It’s not just for fun either, but also creates rare radioactive resources which you can then try to collect.

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Fallout 76 is clearly intended as a games as a service title, and while there was no mention of microtransactions or loot boxes it seems unlikely that Bethesda will be able to keep them out entirely.

That’s just speculation at the moment, but what we do know is that a beta (or rather B.E.T.A. – Break-it Early Test Application) is planned ahead of the game’s November 14 release date.

Bethesda has been burnt more than once by releasing their games at Christmas, but presumably they’re banking on the Fallout name this time.

The Collector’s Edition certainly seems like a quality stocking filler as it not only comes with a glow-in-the-dark map but a replica T-51 Power Armour helmet, complete with working headlight and voice modulator.

To read about Bethesda’s other games click here for an overview of next gen titles The Elder Scrolls VI and Starfield, and here for their first person shooters Doom Eternal, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, and more.